LGBT and Queer history is often a subject that is not only forgotten but deliberately forgone in many academic settings. In high schools and even to an extent at the collegiate level, Gay history is seldom discussed leaving many ignorant to the tumultuous fight for equality and civil rights that was long endured by many in the LGBT community. However, just because such a topic is not discussed, does not make it any less important than the history of any other minority or marginalized group throughout history. In fact, such a lack of representation should make the topic of Gay History and the Gay Movement that much more important and relevant than ever.
The beginning of the Gay Rights Movement is often attributed to the Stonewall Inn Riots on June 28, 1969. The Riots took place after a police raid at the Stonewall Inn, a local safe haven for various marginalized groups in Greenwich Village. Police raided the bar and for days after, riots ensued. The success of the Stonewall Inn Riots is attributed to the Black Transgender Women that led the fight for equality over the week-long riots in New York City, prompting the birth of the Gay Liberation Movement. Police Raids of predominately gay facilities continued into later years resulting in the Toronto Bath House Raids on February 5, 1981, where police raided the cities four largest Bath Houses. The Raids amplified the work of the Right to Privacy Committee until many of the Bath Houses in New York and San Fransisco were shut down.
However, in 1979, the virus that would soon become known as AIDS, first appears in Haiti. In 1981, various outbreaks of what was believed to be a rare form of cancer occurred in New York and Los Angeles, and on June 5, the CDC reported five deaths in the gay community. On July 3, The New York Times published the infamous headline, "Rare cancer seen in 41 homosexuals" and in 1981, Larry Kramer and 80 of his friends founded the "Gay Men's Health Crisis" or GMHC. Only four years after the discovery of AIDS in Haiti, over 3,000 cases of AIDS are reported in America alone, 1,000 of which resulted in deaths. By 1984, scientists were able to isolate the virus that was causing AIDS, prompting them to rename the virus, HIV. By the end of the year, AIDS cases have been reported all over the world while the US reported 6,000 cases of AIDS alone.
In 1985, The Normal Heart, a play chronicling the fight against AIDS by Larry Kramer, debuted on Broadway. Kramer's work prompted discussion about the epidemic causing President Reagan to, for the first time, publicly say the word AIDS on September 17. Other discussions occurred when the first AIDS conference was held in Atlanta and the first antibody test was discovered in Canada. By 1986, 85 countries worldwide were reporting over 38,000 AIDS cases and by 1987, the FDA approved the first anti-HIV drug, AZT. It is also in 1987 that Larry Kramer forms the group "ACT UP!" and organizes the first March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights, popularizing the "silence=death" logo.
As activists such as Larry Kramer and others continued to fight to raise awareness to the devastating nature of AIDS and HIV in not only the gay community but the Black and Latinx communities as well, the number of deaths related to AIDS in America dropped significantly through research and the creation of better medical treatments and drugs. Today, in the United States, it is estimated that there are approximately 1 million people living with HIV and AIDS. Over 75% of the HIV positive population are men, 61% of HIV positive men are gay, bisexual, or various other sexual orientations, and 42% of HIV positive Americans are Black, 33.3% Caucasian, and 21.4% Hispanic.
LGBT and Queer history is often a subject that is not only forgotten but deliberately forgone in many academic settings. In high schools and even to an extent at the collegiate level, Gay history is seldom discussed leaving many ignorant to the tumultuous fight for equality and civil rights that was long endured by many in the LGBT community. However, just because such a topic is not discussed, does not make it any less important than the history of any other minority or marginalized group throughout history. In fact, such a lack of representation should make the topic of Gay History and the Gay Movement that much more important and relevant than ever.
The beginning of the Gay Rights Movement is often attributed to the Stonewall Inn Riots on June 28, 1969. The Riots took place after a police raid at the Stonewall Inn, a local safe haven for various marginalized groups in Greenwich Village. Police raided the bar and for days after, riots ensued. The success of the Stonewall Inn Riots is attributed to the Black Transgender Women that led the fight for equality over the week-long riots in New York City, prompting the birth of the Gay Liberation Movement. Police Raids of predominately gay facilities continued into later years resulting in the Toronto Bath House Raids on February 5, 1981, where police raided the cities four largest Bath Houses. The Raids amplified the work of the Right to Privacy Committee until many of the Bath Houses in New York and San Fransisco were shut down.
However, in 1979, the virus that would soon become known as AIDS, first appears in Haiti. In 1981, various outbreaks of what was believed to be a rare form of cancer occurred in New York and Los Angeles, and on June 5, the CDC reported five deaths in the gay community. On July 3, The New York Times published the infamous headline, "Rare cancer seen in 41 homosexuals" and in 1981, Larry Kramer and 80 of his friends founded the "Gay Men's Health Crisis" or GMHC. Only four years after the discovery of AIDS in Haiti, over 3,000 cases of AIDS are reported in America alone, 1,000 of which resulted in deaths. By 1984, scientists were able to isolate the virus that was causing AIDS, prompting them to rename the virus, HIV. By the end of the year, AIDS cases have been reported all over the world while the US reported 6,000 cases of AIDS alone.
In 1985, The Normal Heart, a play chronicling the fight against AIDS by Larry Kramer, debuted on Broadway. Kramer's work prompted discussion about the epidemic causing President Reagan to, for the first time, publicly say the word AIDS on September 17. Other discussions occurred when the first AIDS conference was held in Atlanta and the first antibody test was discovered in Canada. By 1986, 85 countries worldwide were reporting over 38,000 AIDS cases and by 1987, the FDA approved the first anti-HIV drug, AZT. It is also in 1987 that Larry Kramer forms the group "ACT UP!" and organizes the first March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights, popularizing the "silence=death" logo.
As activists such as Larry Kramer and others continued to fight to raise awareness to the devastating nature of AIDS and HIV in not only the gay community but the Black and Latinx communities as well, the number of deaths related to AIDS in America dropped significantly through research and the creation of better medical treatments and drugs. Today, in the United States, it is estimated that there are approximately 1 million people living with HIV and AIDS. Over 75% of the HIV positive population are men, 61% of HIV positive men are gay, bisexual, or various other sexual orientations, and 42% of HIV positive Americans are Black, 33.3% Caucasian, and 21.4% Hispanic.